3.07 English II: 'The Boarded Window' Q&A

1. 1. Part 1:
2. Which story did you read? I read "The Boarded Window"
3. Describe the physical setting of the story. Which words or descriptions contribute to the emotional setting or mood? What is the mood that results from the author’s use of description? The physical setting of this story was "only a few miles away from what is now the great city of Cincinnati, lay an immense and almost unbroken forest." The words words that contribute to the emotional setting or mood is " He lived alone in a house of logs surrounded on all sides by the great forest, of whose gloom and silence he seemed part, for no one had ever known him to smile nor speak a needless word." The mood that resulted from the author's use of description is a depressed and dark mood.
4. What is the theme? I think death is an important theme for this story. How do the final lines of the story influence the meaning or theme of the story? The final lines of the story that influence the theme of the story, "The body lay near the window….."
5. What techniques does the author use to create a surprise ending? The techniques the author uses to create a surprise ending is foreshadowing and flashback.
6. Were you surprised by the twist? If so, why? Yes, I was surprised at the twist because I thought the wife was dead, but at the end " The ribbon with which he had bound the wrist were broken; the hands were tightly clenched." The woman wasn't dead, she had regained consciousness. If not, what should the author have done to make the ending more surprising and effective?
7. What was your experience in reading this story? My experience in reading this story is it was a little complicated to read. You really had to pay attention to the wording of it. The symbolism in this story was in plain text. Did it evoke fear or physically have an effect on you? Why or why not? It did in fact evoke fear because as I was reading the short story I imagined that cabin being nearby to my house. I have a wooded area near my house as well. It made it more real.
Part 2:

As Murlock looked around the room his wife was walking through the door (discovery). He realized this was all a dream (flashback). His wife was not wounded and she was in great health. He thought to himself that if that dream ever came true it would be very gruesome(foreshadowing).